"India has emerged as hub of start-ups; youth are no longer job seekers": Rajnath Singh

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], March 10 : The nation will rise globally when the youth of the country progresses which will help in fulfilling the dream of Prime Minister Modi's of building a developed India by 2047, said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh during his address at 'Lucknow "kaushal mahotsav" Rojgar Mela on Sunday.
"On my behalf, I heartily congratulate all the youth who have gotten employment in this employment fair and their families, and I pray to God for their bright future," he said.
"India has emerged as a hub of start-ups. Not only start-ups but a large number of start-ups are now turning into unicorns. The youth of this country are no longer just job seekers, but they are also becoming job providers," he added.
Further, Rajnath Singh emphasized that no matter which government is, it is its responsibility to create such an environment in which its youth can get equal employment opportunities.
"Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, government policies are being made today keeping employment opportunities at the center. Be it the construction of next-generation infrastructure on a large scale, the development of rural areas, or expansion of life-related facilities, every scheme, every policy of the Government of India is creating new employment opportunities for the youth. Our government is spending on capital expenditure," he said.
The Union Defence Minister also mentioned that under the infrastructure development, new highways, airports, and railway routes are being built due to which millions of new jobs are being created in the country.
"The speed and scale at which we have worked in the last 10 years is unprecedented. Under the leadership of the Prime Minister and the efforts of our youth, India is writing a great story of development that will determine the future of India for the coming thousand years. It is very important for the youth of India to have the skills to work in different sectors. Therefore, we paid special attention to the skill development of the youth. For this, higher education institutions and skill development institutions are also being constructed on a war footing in the country," Rajnath Singh said in Lucknow.
"Our government has understood this problem and has also worked for it. Farmers and youth have always been our priorities. We want that if the youth is from Uttar Pradesh, then he should get employment here," he added.
Further, hitting out at previous governments, Rajnath Singh said that earlier governments considered the youth as mere job seekers, whereas our government considers them as job providers.
"We have promoted innovation among the youth of this country. To convert their innovative minds into wealth creation, we have started many schemes, like the Start-up Scheme, the Stand-Up Scheme, and the Mudra Scheme. In the last 9 years, the Government of India has given more than Rs. 23 lakh crores to the youth of the country under the Mudra Scheme. With the benefit of this, someone has started his own business, someone has bought a taxi. Through these schemes, we have tried to make the youth stand on their own feet," he said.
The Union Defence Minister asserted that for the first time,Prime Minister Modi has provided unlimited facilities to the youth of this country to expand their potential.
"Today, India has become a hub for startups. The number of start-ups in our country has exceeded 1,20,000," he said.
Union Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Jitendra Singh has said in August 2023 that "StartUp jump in 9 years" is a major success story of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government
Jitendra Singh said that before 2014 there were just about 350 StartUps, but after Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the clarion call from the ramparts of the Red Fort in his Independence Day address in 2015 and rolled out special StartUp scheme in 2016, there was a quantum jump and India today has the world's third largest StartUp ecosystem in the world, boasting 92,683 startups with more than 115 unicorns (billion-dollar enterprises), according to the ministry of personnel, public grievances and pensions.
The minister said, in the year 2022 alone, 26,542 entities were recognised as Startups by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) as startups. A NASSCOM study says tech startups created 23 lakh direct and indirect jobs in the year 2017-2021, according to the statement of the ministry.

Jitendra Singh said Indian Startups raised USD 44 billion in 2021, with over USD 33 billion going towards deals worth more than USD 5 million. "Many Indian startups are domiciled outside India - despite having the majority of their market, personnel and founders in India. These "externalised" or "flipped" startups constitute a large number of India's unicorns," he said.